Compressing apparatus



June 29, 1965 G. c. srrz COMPRESSING APPARATUS 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 16, 1962 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 16, 1962 June 29, 1965 G. c. srrz 3,191,411

COMPRESSING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 16, 1962 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 n -5 HR June 29, 1965 G. c. srrz COMPRESSING APPARATUS 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 16, 1962 June 29, 1965 a. c. sn'z COMPRESSING APPARATUS 6 Sheets-Sheet '6 Filed Aug. 16. 1962 United States Patent 3,191,411 COMPRESSING APPARATUS Gilbert C. Sitz, Harrisburg, Pa., assignor to AMP Incorporated, Harrisburg, Pa." Filed Aug. 16, 1962, Ser. No. 217,435 23 Claims. (Cl. 72-22) This invention relates to presses carrying out metal working operations such as the crimping of electrical connectors and terminals. The invention is herein disclosed in an embodiment comprising a relatively small bench press, however, it will be-apparent that the principles of the invention are equally applicable to larger presses and to manually held tools.

A primary object of the invention is to provide an improved press or the like which is light in weight and compact in size relative to its capacity. A further object is to provide a press which can be constructed in a manner such that the possibility of serious injury to the operator is greatly reduced or entirely eliminated. A further object is to provide a metal working press constructed in a manner such that the possibility of damage to the press dies in the event of a foreign object being located therebetween is greatly reduced. A further object is to provide a press which permits close control over the shut height of the ram. A further object is to provide a press having an improved shut height adjustment feature. A still further object is to provide a crimping press for crimping electric-a1 conectors and terminals onto the ends of wires having a simplified tooling and feed unit.

FIGURE 1A is a view similar to FIGURE 1 but showing the positions of the parts at the end of the down stroke of the press ram.

FIGURES 2, 3, and 4 are views taken along the lines 2-2, 3 -3, and 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional side view showing the forward end of the press including the press frame with the ram in the raised position, this view being taken along the lines 5-5 of FIGURE 12.

. FIGURE 6 is. a view similar to FIGURE 5 but showing a the positions of the parts after the downward stroke of the ram hasstarted.

' FIGURE '7 is a view taken along the lines 7-7 of FIGURE 5. FIGURE 8 is a view taken along the lines 88 of FIGURE 6.

These and other objects of the invention are achieved posite sides of its axis. A pair of spring biased wedges move between the thrust blocks and the ram and function as a motion take-up device to drive the ram through the final portion of its stroke during which the thrust requirements for crimping the electrical connector are at the maximum level. The thrust blocks are caused to reciprocate along their limited amplitude paths by means of an oscillating shaft against which they bear and which is' caused to oscillate by a relatively simple crank arrangement actuated by an electric motor. The invention thus eliminates the need for a relatively heavy flywheel or a relatively large fluid actuated piston cylinder as has been common in the prior art although thecapacity achieved is comparable to the prior art devices. In this preferred embodiment, the electrical connector being crimped is compressed onto the wire end by means of a rapid series of compressive pulses and this method ofcrimping appears to yield substantially improved electrical results in the crimped connection.

The invention also contemplates an improved applicator unit which forms part of the preferred embodiment and which includes .the tooling for crimping a specific electrical connector, the press ram, and the feeding mechanism for feeding the connectors. This applicator unit is contained between the columns of the press frame in a manner which permits its rapid removal so that separate applicators including the necessary tooling can be usedfor different terminals which are to be crimped.

In thed'rawing: t

FIGURE 1 is a side view of a crimping press for electrical connectors in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention showing the par-ts in their normal positions.

FIGURE 9 is'a view taken along the lines 99 of FIGURE 6.

FIGURE 10 is a view taken along the lines 10--10 of FIGURE 5 and showing the lower portion of the ram and the crimping tooling.

FIGURE 11 is a view taken along the lines 11-11 of FIGURE 10. 7

FIGURE 12 is a frontal view of the embodiment of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 13 is a view taken along the lines 1313 of FIGURE 12.

'FIGURE 14 is a view taken along the lines 1414 of FIGURE 5 and showing the relationship of the thrust wedges to the applicator housing.

FIGURE 15 is a perspective partially explOded view showing the press frame, the applicator housing, and the applicator ram.

FIGURE 16 is a view taken along the lines 1616 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 17 is a wiring diagram for the preferred embodime'nt of the invention.

Referring first to FIGURES 1, 5, and 12, the disclosed embodiment is mounted on a base plate 2 and has a crimping press frame generally indicated at 4 at its forward end. This press frame comprises a pair of upright columns 6, 7, a press bed 8 disposed between the columns on the base plate 2, and an upper cross member 10 which is contained between the columns at their upper ends. The press bed 8 and the cross member 10 are held in position by means of tie rods 12 and 14 which extend through portplate 20 by means of suitable fasteners 18. The

motor support plate 20 is supported at its rearward end by means of an additional column 22 which may be secured in any suitable manner to the base plate and to the underside of the plate 20.

A shaft 26 is journaled in the upper end of column 6 and has a central eccentric or crank throw 28 disposed in a slot 24 in the column. Shaft 26 extends rearwardly of column 6 and has a pulley 39 mounted on its end which is coupled by means of a belt 32 to a larger pulley 34 on the end 'of the output shaft 36 of a motor 38 mounted by means of fasteners 40 to the plate 20.

The eccentric: 28 of shaft 26 is rotatably contained in a bearing in a connecting rod 42 which extends into a slot 46in cross member 10; A wrist pin 44 extends through an oversized opening 47 in cross member 10 and -10 andinto hearings in each of a pair of levers 48 which extend downwardly of the press frame between the col- 8) in a manner described below.

inwardly and outwardly of the slot 46 and thereby 'oscil late the levers 48 land the shaft 54. :The amplitude of these oscillations is relatively small as explained below and the speed is relatively high as indicated by the relative sizes of the pulleys 30, 54. v

A pair of rods 56 extend through spaced-apart openings in the shaft 54 on opposite sides of, and equidistant from the axis of the shaft. These rods should tit snugly within the openings but should also be rotatable relative to the shaft Without the development of unduly high frictional forces. Shaft 54' has a central recess 58 which intersects the diameters of the openings through which rods 56 extend so that the surfaces of the rods are partially exposed. A pair of thrust blocks '60 are disposed in the recess 58 and have semi-cylindrical upper surfaces 62 which bear against the exposed surface port-ions of the rods 56. These thrust blocks extend downwardly through an opening in cross member 10 and are maintained in position by means of pins 64 in the cross member 10 which extend through oversized openings in the thrust blocks. The function of these thrust blocks is to transmit thrust from the rods 56 through a pair of wedges 110 described below to the press ram contained within the applicator unit 66 which is described immediately below.

' The applicator unit 66 (FIGURE 15) comprises generally a housing, a ram, and the feed mechanism for feeding electrical connectors to a position between the crimp ing dies. The housing is generally of C-shaped configuration having an upper section '68, a lower 'or base section 70 and integral upright portions 72. An opening 74 extends inwardly from the rearward side of the housing 66 and has on its opposed sides guide surfaces 76 which are centrally grooved at 78 for accommodation of the complementary sides of the ram 80. The ram has a depending tool holding portion 7 9 on one side of which there is mounted a crimping die 82 and on the opposite side of which there is mounted a shear blade 84. The crimping die and shear blade cooperate with a crimping anvil 8 1 and shearing bar .166 provided in an extension 164 of the anvil, this extension having an opening extending therethrough to permit passage of the shearing blade. The upper portion of the ram is generally U-shaped and has an inclined floor 90 contained between opposed sidewalls 88 for cooperation with wedges 1 10 (FIGURES 5, 7 and The tool holder portion 79 of the ram has pins 86 on its opposite sides on which rollers are mounted. These pins are received in slots 92 in each of a pair of arms 94 which extend through oversized openings 95 in the housing portions 68 (see FIGURES 9-11). The rearward ends of the arms 94 have cylindrical bearing portions 96 and are nonrotatably mounted by means of pins 98 on a shaft 100 which in turn is rotatably journaled in the upper ends 17 of the brackets 16.

An L-shaped link 102 is nonrotatably secured to the end of shaft 100 adjacent to the outside surface of the lefthand one of the brackets 16. An elongated pin .104 extends through the lower end portion of link 102 and through the end of a plunger 106 of a solenoid 108 mounted on the upper surface of base plate 2. It can beseen from FIGURES and 6 that as this solenoid plunger is retracted, the shaft 100 is partially rotated by link 102 to swing the arms 94 in a counterclockwise direction and lower the ram from the position of FIGURE 5 to the position of FIGURE 6. When the link 102 is in the posi- 4 ti-on of FIGURE 5 it contacts a normally closed switch 103, and holds this switch open. The function of this switch is to de-energiz-e an additional solenoid 142 when the press is not being cycled as will be apparent from the description given below of the control circuit.

After the ram is lowered by the solenoid 108 through a portion of its total stroke, a pair of wedges 110 move between the ram .and the thrust blocks and transit the limited amplitude movement of these blocks to the ram thereby to drive it through the remaining portion of its stroke. These wedges are disposed beneath the mounting plate 20 with their forward ends 1 11 bearing against the ram prior to initiation of the press cycle. Each block 1 has a lower surface 112 which has an inclination complementary to, the inclined floor of the ram and a groove 114 on its side which receives a guide pin 11 6 on the side of the opening 74 of the applicator housing thereby to guide the wedges forwardly and between the thrust blocks and the ram.

The wedges are secured to the ends of rods 118 which extend rearwardly beneaththe mounting plate 20, through oversized openings in a block 148 (FIGURE 2), thence through a fixed bearing block 120, and through oversized openings in a stop block 122. Nuts 124 are threaded onto the end of the rods to prevent their passage through the openings in the block .12 2 and contacting plates 125 are clamped between these stop nuts. The block .122 has a transverse opening beneath rods 118 in which a pin 1126 is rotatably mounted (FIGURE 3) which block 122. Rod .128 extends forwardly through column 22, through bearing block 1 20 and has a block on its end which is pivoted :at 131 between a pair of arms 13 2. The lower ends of arms 132 are secured by means of pins to a shaft 134 extending transversely across base plate 2 and rotatably contained in a suitable bearing block 136. Shaft 134 is secured by means of a pin to a link 13 8 which at its opposite end is pivotally secured in the slot-ted end of a plunger of a'solenoid .142.

The wedges 110 are biased leftwardly in FIGURES 5 and 6 by means of a spring 146 which surrounds the rods V118 .and are interposed between the wedges and the block 148. A lever 150 has a pin-slot connection at its upper end to block 148 and is pivoted intermediate its ends at 15-2 to an L-shaped bracket 154 which depends from the underside of the plate 20. The lower end of lever 150 is pivoted at 156 to a link 158 which extends forwardly towards the press frame. The forward end 160 of this link is pivotally connected to the pin 104. In addition to biasing the wedges, the springs 148 function to move the pin 104 leftwardly, during one portion of the cycle, from the position of FIGURE 1A by means of lever 152 and link 158. Such movement of the pin actuates the terminal feed mechanism which is described immediately below.

The terminal strip T is fed by a slide 184 which is reciprocably mounted on a block 168, this block having a cover plate secured to its underside by means of fasteners 174. A centrally located groove 176 on the underside of block 168 provides an enclosed feed track for guiding the terminal strip to the crimping zone of the ress. An opening is provided in the top section of block 168 at its forward end adjacent to the press frame and a sheet metal plate is mountedin this opening. This plate has a depending resilient finger 182 which extends into the terminal feed track and functions as a stop to prevent .rearwardmovement of the strip while permit-ting forward movement thereof.

The reciprocal feed slide 184 which straddles the block or plate 168 has a centrally located transverse flange 186 on its upper side. A rod 188 extends through an over rounds the rod. This spring is retained between the flange and a retainer 192 on the end of the rod and func- Itions as a lost motion connection between the rod and the feed slide. The rearward end of rod 188 is enlarged at 195 and pivotally connected at 194 to a feed lever 196. Feed lever-196 is pivotally mounted at its lower end 198 on .a bracket 200 extending from the base plate 2 and intermediate its ends it has an oversized slot 203 through which the previously mentioned pin 104 extends so that upon movement of the solenoid plunger, the feed lever 196 will be oscillated thereby moving the feed slide 184.

The particular type of feed slide shown in the preferred embodiment is described more fully in the copending application of Gilbert Sitz, Serial No. 142,270, filed October 2, 1961, for Connector Feeding Device. The movement of the strip of connectors is achieved by means of a finger 210 which extends through a slot 212 in the side of the plate 170 and-pushes the strip forwardly. This finger extends from a plate 208 which is pivotally mounted bymeans of ears 206 on a shaft 204 extending between depending sides 205 of the feed slide 184. A spring 214 normally biases this plate in a clock- Wise direction as viewed in FIGURE 5 but permits movement thereof in a counterclockwise direction thereby to permit retraction of the slide. The amplitude of the feed stroke is controlled by means of an adjustable stop 216 which limits rearward movement of the slide from the position of FIGURE 5 to the position of FIGURE 6. If the lever 196 continues to rotate in a clockwise direction after the feed slide has come to rest against the stop 216, the lost motion connection between the rod 188 and the flange 186 permits such movement of the lever with accompanying compression of the spring190,

' The end portion of block 168 is received within the opening 74 of housing 66 and is. securedby means of fasteners 169 to extensions 164 of the crimping anvil. The anvil itself is supported on and secured to a block 162 by means of suitable fasteners. Clamping screws 179 extend through the lower portion 70 of the housing to secure the block 168, the anvil block 81 and the feed block 184 in position. The applicator unit 66 of the disclosed embodiment has a snug fit in the space between the frame columns 6, 7 and is of a Width no less than that of the press bed block, 8 so that the applicator can be securely clamped in .position by merely tightening the nuts on the tie rods 14.

An electrical circuit for the disclosed embodiment (FIGURE 17) comprises a foot switch 222 (not specifically shown in the previous figures) connectedin series with a relay 218 so that closure of the foot switch energizes the coil 224 of the relay.. This relay includes a holding circuit switch 221 which is closed upon energizing of coil 224 so that the relay will remain energized if foot witch 222 isclosed only momentarily. The (relay 218 also includes a switch 220 which is normally (when coil 224 is deenergized) in. the position of FIG- URE 17 and connected to a lead from solenoid 142. Upon energizing the relay, switch 220 is shifted to disconnect solenoid 142 from the power supply line and to connect solenoid 108 to the line. Switches 127 are arranged in parallel relationship with respect to each other and inseries with respect to relay coil 224. These switches are normally closed but are opened by contacting platesposition of FIGURE 5. In otherwords, switch 103 is closed during the operating cycle of the press.

The operation of the disclosed embodiment is as follows. At the beginning of the cycle, the parts will be in the position of FIGURE 5. The operator positions a wire W between the leading terminal of the strip and the upper crimping die 82 and momentarily closes the foot switch 222 thereby to energize coil 224 of relay 218 which closes holding circuit switch 221 so that the relay coil remains energized until both switches 127 are opened at the end of the down stroke of the ram. When coil 224 is energized, switch 220 is shifted from the position of FIGURE 17 to its alternative position thereby to energize solenoid 108 causing plunger 106 and pin 104 to move rightwardly from the position of FIGURES 1 and 5 to the positions of FIGURES 1A and 6, and to swing the lever 102 and arms 94 in a counterclockwise directionas viewed in FIGURE 5. Such movement of the arms draws the ram partially downwardly, to the position of FIGURE 6 so that the wedges are permitted to enter the space between the ram and the thrust blocks 60; Rightward movement of plunger 106 also causes disengagement of lever 102 from switch 103, so that this switch assumes its normal closed condition until the very end of the cycle, and causes lever 150 to swing counterclockwise, as viewed in FIGURE 1, about its pivotal axis 152 thereby moving block 148 leftwardly in this figure with respect to rods 118 to compress springs 146. The energy stored in the springs by this movement of the block 148 is expended in driving the wedges inwardly between the press ram and the thrust blocks. The rightward movement of pin 104 in FIGURE 5 also swings lever 196 in a clockwise direction about its pivotal axis 198 to retract the terminal strip until an upstanding ear or other projection of one of the terminals comes to rest against stop 182. This slight movement of the strip precisely positions the leading terminal on the anvil as explained in my copending application Serial No. 142,270.

After the parts have reached the positions of FIGURE 6, the ram is moved downwardly through the remainder of its stroke by means of the shaft 54, the thrust blocks 60, and the wedges 110. The rapid oscillation of shaft 54 results in the application of thrust-pulses to the blocks 60 alternately and repetitively. The wedges move in alternating order between the ram and thrust blocks and function as a motion take-up means to drive the ram downwardly. As shown in FIGURE 8, when the shaft 54 reaches the limit of its rotary travel in one direction, the maximum thrust developed is applied to one of the blocks 60 while no'thrust is applied to the other one of the blocks and one of the wedges can move between this other block and the ram. In FIGURE 8, the, maximum thrust is being applied to the blockon the right and no thrust is being applied to, the block on the.left.. In FIGURE 8, the

wedge associated with the lefthand block is thus free to move inwardly and the wedge associated with the righthand block is under maximum compression.

After the ram has been driven downwardly to the requiredextent to crimp the terminal, the plates will contact and, open the switches 127 thereby to deenergize the relay coil 224. When this coil is deenergized, switch 220 in the relay reverts to the position of FIGURE 17, its normal position, solenoid 142 is energized and solenoid 108 is deenergized. Whensolenoid 142 is energized and direction about its pivotal axis 152 tomove the link 158 andthe pin 104 leftwardly to the positon of FIGURE 1. Leftward movement of this pin causes leftward movement of plunger 106, upward movement of the ram to the position of FIGURE 5, and counterclockwise movement of lever 196. Lever 196, in moving from the position of FIGURE 6 to the position of FIGURE moves the feed about by leftward movement of pin 104 opens the normally closed switch 103 thereby deenergizing solenoid 142 at the end of the cycle.

The disclosed embodiment of the invention has several advantages which will be apparent from the following discussion. In the first place, a press or hand tool in accordance with the invention can be made much more compact and light in weight than a conventional crank or similar type press without sacrifice of press capacity. The basis or reason for this advantage can be explained by the following example. To compare the instant press with a conventional crank press, when a connector is crimped in a conventional crank press, the work performed in making the crimp is carried out during a small portion of the press cycle, say the /s of the cycle which occurs immediately before the press ram reaches bottom dead center. With a crank type press driven by an electric motor, it is usually necessary to provide a flywheel to. store energy during the entire press cycle in order to provide the large amount of energy required for crimping during the short time interval (about A; of the cycle) in which the energy is utilized for crimping. In the wedge type press of the instant invention, on the other hand, a large portion of the total cycling time, for example about 30-60%, can be utilized in performing the crimping operation, the remainder being used for the initial downward motion of the ram' effected by solenoid 108 and for the withdrawal of the wedges and the raising of the ram by the springs 146. It follows that if the cycling time of a wedge press in accordance with the invention is set at the same length as that of a conventional crank press, more time is available to transmit the energy supplied by the motor to the crimp and the use of a flywheel can be obviated and the motor, acting through the mechanical advantage supplied by the wedges and linkage, can supply the required energy directly. In other words, the instant wedge type press takes more time to perform the actual crimp than a crank press so that the power requirements are thereby reduced.

Another significant feature of the invention which contributes to compactness isthat with the wedge mechanism for driving the press ram downwardly, the bearing loads (p.s.i.) can be maintained at a low level in the eccentric 28 which rotates at a high velocity. However; where the bearing loads are extremely high, as in the oscillating shaft 54 and the rods 56, the velocity of movement is slow by virtue of the mechanical advantage afiorded by the levers 48. This situation of low bearing loads where high Velocities are involved and low velocities where high bearing loads are involved is advantageous from the standpoint of bearing design in that it permits the use of smaller bearings and, therefore, contributes to the achievement of a compact press. a e

A further advantage of the disclosed embodiment is that extremely precise adjustment of the shut height of the ram can be achieved by merely moving the switches 127 horizontally towards or away from the contact plates 125 I by means of the adjustable mounting platform shown in FIGURE 16. The edge of this platform functions as a mechanical stop for the rod 118 which first contacts its associated switch, .an arrangement which prevents inward movement of either of the wedges beyond the desired position and thereby prevents overcrimping. It will be apparent that a substantial movement of these switches 127 must be affected to bring about an extremely small change in the shut height since the surfaces 112, 90 on the wedges and the ram respectively are inclined at a relatively gentle angle. The invention thus avoids the need for closely dimensioned shims or other adjusting devices which have previously been used to adjust the shut height of the press. r

' Since most of the stroke of the ram is brought about by the solenoid 108 and since this solenoid need not be an extremely powerful one it is apparent that the possibility of accidents involving the press operator or damage to the press tooling is largely avoided withthe disclosed embodiment. If the operator should somehow close the foot switch and actuate the press cycle while his finger is beneath the crimping die, the crimping die would be brought down towards his finger but only under the influence of the solenoid 108 so that amputation of the finger would in all probability be avoided. By the same token, if the press should accidentally be actuated with a foreign object such as a screw driver between the crimping die and anvil, the crimping die would be brought downwardly against the foreign object but the tooling would not be shattered since the resistance of the foreign object would be sufiicient to prevent further downward movementunder the influence of the solenoid.

A still further advantage of the invention is that apparently improvedresults in the crimping of electrical connectors are obtained with the instant press by virtue of the repeated and intermittent applications of thrust to the connector during crimping. During each crimping cycle, the thrust is repeatedly built up and relaxed to some extent and the actual time spent in the crimping operation and particularly in the critical final stages of the crimping operation is relatively long although the total cycling time of the press may be no longer than is the case with a conventional press. The repeated applications of thrust are believed to permit the achievement of a higher degree of work hardening during the crimping operation with a resulting reduction in the amount of elastic recovery after the crimped connection is removed from the press.

. The particular embodiment disclosed herein permits the achievement of an extremely compact terminal applicator unit 66 with self-contained crimping tooling and terminal strip feeding means. With this arrangement, when it is desired to change the size or type of terminal being applied, it is merely necessary to remove the entire applicator from the press and substitute one having the proper tooling and feed stroke for the new terminal.

Changes in construction will occur to those skilled in the art and various apparently different modifications and embodiments may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. The matter set forth in the foregoing description and accompanying drawings is offered by way of illustration only. The actual scope of the invention is intended to be defined in the following claims when viewed in their proper perspective against the prior art.

I claim:

1. A compressing device comprising, a ram, means for applying thrust to one end of said ram intermittently and alternately on opposite sides of the axis of said ram, said thrust applying means having an amplitude substantially less than the stroke of said ram, and motion takeup means movable between said thrust applying means and said ram thereby to transmit thrust to said ram and drive said ram along its path of reciprocation.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said motion take-up means comprises a wedge means movable between said thrust applying means and said ram.

3. A device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for applying thrust comprises a pair of reciprocable blocks, and including means for reciprocating said blocks in out-of-phase relationship.

4. A compressing device comprising, a ram pulsatory thrust applying means for applying thrust to one end of said ram intermittently and alternately on opposite sides of said ram, said thrust applying means having an amplitude which is substantially less than the stroke of said ram, and motion take-up means for transmitting motion from said thrust applying means to said ram, said takeup means being expansile between said ram and said thrust applying means during the intervals between applications of thrust thereby to drive said ram.

5. A device as set forth in claim 4 wherein said thrust applying means comprises a member disposed proximate to said one end of said ram, said member being oscillatory about an axis extending transversely of the axis of said ram whereby said thrust is applied by opposite sides of said member as each side moves towards said ram.

6. A device as set forth in claim 4 wherein said motion take-up means comprises wedge means movable between said thrust applying means and said ram.

7. A compressing device comprising, a ram, a shaft disposed adjacent to one end of said ram on an axis extending transversely of the path of reciprocation of said ram, means for oscillating said shaft, a pair of thrust transmission blocks in engagement with said shaft on opposite sides of the axis thereof and extending towards said ram, a pair of wedges movable along a path extending transversely of the path of reciprocation of said ram, one of said wedges being movable between one of said blocks and said ram and the other of said wedges being movable between the other of said blocks and said ram, and means for moving said wedges whereby, upon oscillation of said shaft, said blocks alternately move towards said ram and said wedges move between said blocks and said ram thereby to drive said ram along its path of reciprocation.

8. A device as set forth in claim 7 wherein said ram is normally disposed on one side of said wedges and said wedges are fully retracted from between said blocks and said ram, and including ancillary means for initially moving said ram along its path of reciprocation and away from said blocks a distance suflicient to permit said wedges to enter between said blocks and said ram.

9. A device as set forth in claim 8 wherein said ancillary means comprises a solenoid actuated linkage.

10. A device as set forth in claim 7 including solenoid means for retracting said wedges from between said ram and said blocks after completion of the stroke of said ram.

11. A compressing device comprising, a ram, a shaft disposed adjacent to one end of said ram on an axis extending transversely of said path of reciprocation of said ram, means for oscillating said shaft, a pair of thrust transmission blocks in engagement with said shaft on opposite sides of the axis thereof and extending towards said ram, a pair of wedges normally disposed on one side of said ram, resilient means biasing said wedges for movement between said ram and said thrust blocks, and a first solenoid means for moving said ram through a substantial portion of its stroke in one direction whereby upon energization of said solenoid means and initial movement of said ram, said wedges enter between said ram and said thrust blocks, and upon oscillation of said shaft, said thrust blocks are alternately reciprocated thereby to apply thrust to said ram on opposite sides of the axis thereof, and said wedges move further between said thrust blocks and said ram to drive said ram through the remaining portion of its stroke in said one direction.

12. Apparatus as set forth in claim 11 including a means for retracting said wedges from between said ram and said thrust blocks after completion of the stroke of said ram in said one direction thereby to permit return movement of said ram.

13. Apparatus as set forth in claim 11 including a second solenoid means for retracting said wedges from between said ram and said thrust blocks after completion of the stroke of said ram in said one direction and including resilient means for moving said ram through its stroke in the opposite direction.

14. A compressing device comprising a ram movable towards and away from a stationary anvil or the like, a relatively low-thrust solenoid means for moving said ram through a substantial portion of its stroke towards said stationary anvil, and high capacity thrust applying means engageable with said ram during a minor and terminal portion of its stroke towards said anvil thereby to apply a relatively high thrust to said ram during said terminal stroke portion.

15. A compressing device comprising, a ram movable along a straight line path, thrust applying means proximate to one end of said ram, said thrust applying means said ram along said path, and means for limiting expansion of said motion take-up means thereby to limit the travel of said ram.

16. A device as set forth in claim 15 wherein said motion take-up means comprises wedge means movable between said thrust applying means and said one end of said ram.

17. A device as set forth in claim 15 wherein said motion take-up means comprises a wedge means movable between said thrust applying means and said one end of said ram along a path extending transversely of the path of movement of said ram, and said means for limiting expansion of said motion take-up means comprises a stop for limiting the movement of said wedge means.

18. A compressing device comprising, a ram movable along a straight line path, thrust applying means proximate to one end of said ram, said thrust applying means being oscillatory along a path which is substantially parallel to said path of said ram, electrically actuated means for oscillating said thrust applying means, wedge means movable between said thrust applying means and said one end of said ram along a path extending transversely of the path of movement of said ram thereby to transmit thrust to said ram and move said ram, and a switch means for deenergizing said electrically actuated means, said switch being engageable by said wedge means after a predetermined movement of said wedge means thereby to limit movement of said ram.

19. A compressing device comprising, a ram movable along a straight line path, oscillatory thrust applying means for intermittently applying a limited stroke thrust to one end of said ram, the stroke of said thrust applying means being substantially less than the stroke of said ram, electrically energized actuating means for actuating said thrust applying means, wedge means movable between said ram and said thrust applying means, said wedge means functioning as a motion take-up means thereby to drive said ram along said path, and switch means for deenergizing said electrically energized actuating means, said switch means being engageable by said wedge means after a predetermined movement of said wedge means thereby to limit the movement of said ram.

20. A device as set forth in claim 19 wherein said thrust applying means applies thrust intermittently and alternately on opposite sides of the axis of said ram, said wedge means comprising a pair of independently movable Wedges, said wedges being alternately and intermittently movable thereby to take-up motion of said thrust applying means after each application of thrust.

21. A compressing device comprising, a ram, a shaft disposed adjacent to one end of said ram on an axis extending transversely of the path of movement of said ram, means for oscillating said shaft, a pair of thrust transmission blocks in engagement with said shaft on opposite sides of the axis thereof and extending towards said ram, 9. pair of wedges movable along a path extending transversely of the path of reciprocation of said ram, one of said wedges being movable between one of said blocks and said ram and the other of said wedges being movable between the other of said blocks and said ram, means for moving said wedges whereby, upon oscillation of said shaft, said blocks alternately move towards said ram and said wedges move between said blocks and said ram thereby to drive said ram along its path of reciprocation, and means engageable by said Wedges after a predetermined movement for stopping oscillation of said shaft thereby to control the movement of said ram.

22. Apparatus as set forth in claim 21 wherein said means for oscillating said shaft is electrically actuated, and said means for stopping oscillation of said shaft comprises a switch.

23. A compressing device comprising, a ram, thrust applying means for applying thrust to one end of said ram intermittently and alternately on opposite sides of the axis otsaid ram, motion take-up means effective between said thrust applying means and said ram, and means for incrementally increasing the efiective displacement of said motion take-up means after each application of thrust by said thrust applying means thereby to transmit thrust to said ram and to drive 'said ram along its path of recipr-ocation.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primary Examiner. NEDWIN BERGER, Examiner. 

1. A COMPRESSING DEVICE COMPRISING, A RAM, MEANS FOR APPLYING THRUST TO ONE END OF SAID RAM INTERMITTENTLY AND ALTERNATELY ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE AXIS OF SAID RAM, SAID THRUST APPLYING MEANS HAVING AN AMPLITUDE SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN THE STROKE OF SAID RAM, AND MOTION TAKEUP MEANS MOVABLE BETWEEN SAID THRUST APPLYING MEANS 